Madam Hooch taught Flying to the first yearGryffindors and Slytherins in the Training Grounds on Thursday, 12 September, during the second week of term.[3] She had twenty of the school broomsticks lined up ready on the grass before she arrived, despite the fact that the school brooms vibrated if the rider flew too high and always flew slightly to the left.[3] She probably had a personal acquaintance with a student named Amanda, whom Hooch greeted personally.[4] To begin the class, Hooch ordered the students to stand on the left side of their brooms with their right hand over it. They were told to say, "up!" to summon the brooms to their hands and were then to hover slightly in the air. Unfortunately, a Gryffindor named Neville Longbottom kicked off too early and lost control, resulting in an accident and breaking his wrist. After examining the wound, Madam Hooch took Neville to the hospital wing to see Madam Pomfrey, the school matron, who could easily heal it, but before leaving, she told the other students that anyone who was caught flying their broom would be expelled immediately.[3]

Not long after Halloween, the first match of the Quidditch season took place: Gryffindor versus Slytherin. Madam Hooch was to referee the game and told both teams to play fairly, though she was obviously speaking more to the Slytherin team.[6] She released the Bludgers first, then the Golden Snitch, and the game began when she threw the Quaffle into the air.[15] During that game, many fouls were committed by the Slytherins, and she awarded several penalties to the Gryffindors, who won when the new Seeker, Harry Potter, caught the Golden Snitch.[6] Hooch, riding her broom, blew the whistle and announced the Gryffindors' victory to the Hogwarts crowd.[16]

The next school year, Madam Hooch refereed the Gryffindor versus Slytherin Quidditch match, during which Harry Potter, the Gryffindor Seeker, was attacked by a jinxed Bludger. The mystery was how the Bludger was jinxed, since it had been kept safe and locked in Madam Hooch's office. She was forced to stop the game momentarily for the Gryffindors once they deliberated over the rogue Bludger, but they ultimately decided to continue playing, as otherwise they would have had to forfeit the match.[10]

1993–1994 school year

"It will need to be checked for jinxes. Of course, I'm no expert, but I daresay Madam Hooch and Professor Flitwick will strip it down — […]. It shouldn't take more than a few weeks. You will have it back if we are sure it is jinx-free."

Furthermore, Harry mysteriously received a Firebolt broomstick for Christmas, which McGonagall thought could have come from Sirius Black. In order to ensure that the broom was safe to ride, McGonagall handed it over to Madam Hooch and Professor Flitwick, the Charms Master, who would "strip it down" to look for curses, hexes, or jinxes.[24] A few weeks later, once Hooch and Flitwick had ensured the broom's safety, the Firebolt was returned to Harry Potter to use it his Quidditch practices and games.[25]

1994–1995 school year

"It is also my painful duty to inform you that the Inter-House Quidditch Cup will not take place this year. This is due to an event that will be starting in October, and continuing throughout the school year, taking up much of the teachers' time and energy — but I am sure you will all enjoy it immensely. [...] The Triwizard Tournament will be taking place at Hogwarts this year."

Physical description

In her old age, during the 1990s, Madam Hooch had spiky grey hair which was cut short and had piercing, yellow, hawk-like eyes,[3] usually hidden behind goggles.[15] She usually wore a white button-down collared shirt and black necktie with the Hogwarts crest, under a cloak,[4] but wore more formal black robes with a hat while sitting in the Great Hall.[12]

Broomstick Knowledge: Hooch was also known to be adept in the lore of brooms. This was evident when Minerva McGonagall handed over a Firebolt to her and Filius Flitwick so that they could test it for jinxes, hexes and curses; Flitwick using his charms mastery, and Hooch using her knowledge.[24] Also, while examining Harry's Firebolt before his first flight on it, she briefly mentions how the Nimbus series develop a drag after a few years of flying.[8] This implies that she possesses a considerable knowledge of broomsticks.

In an episode of the Britcom series My Family, in which Wanamaker plays Susan, one of her sons pulls a trading card from a box of cereal and exclaims "Hey look, Madam Hooch!" Also, in a later episode during Halloween when Susan is dressed as a witch and is trying to encourage her husband to join in, he tells her she "can take your Nimbus 2000 and stick it where the sun doesn't shine."

On the first game of the series (GBA version), when Harry casts a spell that hits Hooch, she says that she's never been insulted that way since an anti-aircraft singed her broom during the Great War (1914-1918). This indicates that Hooch was born before 1918, possibly on the 1900s, seeing as she was already capable of broom flight. The fact that she owned a Silver Arrow supports this, seen as the broom was manufactured very early in the twentieth century.

Madam Hooch is the only Hogwarts teacher (excluding members of staff who do not teach, such as Madam Pomfrey and Madam Pince) to be referred to as 'Madam' rather than 'Professor'. The exact reasons for this are unknown, although it is possible that it is because she only teaches the first-years, and the majority of her job involves Quidditch matches as opposed to actual teaching.